When Darkness Turns to Light

Wilting Red Rose

Recap: "Little Hikari . . . such a pathetic creature. Born with a heart of pure light, yet you could so easily fall prey to darkness." He smirked once more. "I will show you mercy as my former pupil and put you out of your miser-!"

Before he finished his statement, Hikari took her kunai and stabbed her former teacher; the wind chakra-extended blade pierced him all the way through.

Orochimaru dropped Hikari and stumbled back; the both of them collapsed to the floor at nigh the exact same moment. Neither said a word, and while the former was evidently unmoving, the latter breathed heavily. Her kunai clattered to her side.

When the girl wondered if she may have actually ended Orochimaru, his "corpse" responded. The mouth of the body opened, and a pair of hands stretched it impossibly wide, allowing for the head of a new body to come out, almost like a snake shedding its skin. Partially out of the old body, the Sannin was covered in fluid, and he glared at his student from beneath the curtain of his hair; his eyes appeared to almost glow.

Hikari stared, speechless. He . . . can regenerate himself. . . .

Chapter Forty-five: Wilting Red Rose

Another tear leaked from Hikari's eyes, and she closed her lids. This was the end. She had no hope for survival now. She did not have the energy to fight the full battle it would take to find an injury Orochimaru could not survive, assuming one existed.

Riku . . . Sora . . . Donald . . . Goofy . . . Red XIII. I'm sorry, I. . . .

Orochimaru sneered, "Cunning Little Hikari Uzumaki. You said all those frilly words to distract me and buy time for you. . . . You didn't mean any of it, did you?"

She flinched. "No . . . I meant every word."

Out of his mouth, he summoned another snake, and out of its maw, the handle of a sword protruded. He drew the Sword of Kusanagi and took to his feet. Menacingly, he approached her.

Suddenly, a giant black and white creature-a lion drawn of ink-interfered in the exchange and scooped up Hikari in its mouth, taking care not to bite her. It carried her out of harm's way, up to a slightly higher tier where Orochimaru could not reach her, and set her down.

Hikari stared at it, dumbfound. What is . . .? Then, realizing who the lion belonged to, she turned her head every which way. Sai . . . !

Hovering over them, a masked boy mounted an ink hawk. He was dressed almost completely in white, including his midriff-bearing shirt, fingerless gloves, capris, and zori. He also had a torn cape of a slightly off shade of white, almost ashen, that covered as far as down his chest in the front and the small of his back in the posterior. His mask was reminiscent of a Konoha ANBU's, and resembled a dog.

The boy reached for his mask and shifted it so it rested on the side of his head, not over his face. Although his skin was more ashen, particularly around his eyes, he was definitely Sai. "Hello, Hikari," he smiled. "You look like you could use some help."

"What . . . what are you doing here?" she wondered.

"Krystal and I have been traveling the worlds, and came upon this one. After some exploring, we found ourselves here, where you all seem to have your hands full," he explained. "Sora and the others are trying to destroy all of the dark orbs to stop Oogie Boogie, and Krystal noticed you fighting someone. She saw that you weren't doing well, either."

Hikari pursed her lips. "Dark Globs"? Is that what transformed the manor? The power of darkness? "Where's Krystal?"

Before he could reply, he had to dodge Orochimaru's kusanagi when it was thrown at him. He looked back down at the snake man. "You'll fight me now. I haven't forgotten about you." Regarding Hikari once more, he added, "You should get somewhere safe."